Painter and draughtsman Christine Wrest-Smith studied at Monash University, with a semester at the Prato, Italy. Her realistic paintings and drawings are an exploration of personal territory using the birds nest as a metaphor to examine the process of construction, shelter and space. Each nest is a combination of strength and fragility, its individual characteristics beautifully rendered in paint or charcoal. Wrest-Smith varies her technique to match the personality of the individual nest, those put together with haste are loosely drawn, while those which were meticulously constructed are built up with precise layers of paint as they would have been made with exacting layers of twigs. What began as construction by one being has now become an expression through the process of construction by another. Wrest-Smith’s works have been exhibited in Melbourne and Italy. She was awarded the Savage Club Prize in 2010 and the Masterworks Contemporary Art Prize in 2011. She has completed several portrait commissions and her work is held in public and private collections.
PAST EXHIBITIONS
Image above: Rodney Pople ‘I did it my way’ (self portrait) 2020 oil and watercolour on linen (Archibald Prize) Congratulations …
Image: Christine Wrest-Smith, Portrait of Salvatore Zofrea. Congratulations to Christine Wrest-Smith who has been announced a Finalist in the Percival Portrait Painting …
Congratulations to Australian Galleries represented artists Dean Brown, Prudence Flint, Stewart MacFarlane, Lewis Miller, Rodney Pople, Peter Wegner, Marcus Wills and …
Above image: Camie Lyons, Stick Figures (keepers), bronze, in situ. Photograph: Keith Maxwell. Congratulations to Camie Lyons who has been …
Image above: Mary Tonkin Ripples, Kalorama 2020 oil on linen 71 x 80 cm Landscape painter, Mary Tonkin, has recently …
Image above: Martin King Strangerlands #1 2020 graphite on drafting film with watercolour on paper, gouache and metal foil 148 …
Last week, Jimmy Rix’s monumental 18 metre-long sculpture, Road Kill, was installed in Forbes, NSW as part of a major …
Image above: G.W. Bot Other glyphs 2020 linocut 38 x 38 cm – Photography courtesy of Tim Gresham Sue Anderson, …
Image above: Mandy Martin Falling star 5 2012 pigment and oil on linen 76 x 280 cm Mandy Martin’s work …
Image above: Janet Luxton Eye contact 2021 oil on linen canvas 125 x 165 cm Congratulations to Janet Luxton and …
Image above: Michelle Hiscock Menin Gate 2021 oil on linen 61 x 75 cm Congratulations to Michelle Hiscock who has …
Above image: Rodney Pople, Liffy Falls, oil on linen, 141 x 181cm, 2021 A huge congratulations to Rodney Pople …
Image above: Robin Stewart The second interview 2018 oil on linen 97 x 97 cm Robin Stewart’s paintings depict a …
